Berlin: John Carney’s ‘Sing Street’ With U2’s Bono And The Edge To Be Sold Offshore By FilmNation

After the stampede at Toronto to land domestic rights to John Carney‘s Can A Song Save Your Life?, here’s a Berlin title worth paying attention to. FilmNation Entertainment has been selected to sell international rights to Carney’s next film, which will begin production this summer in Dublin. Called Sing Street, the pic is autobiographical in tone, and Carney’s fellow Irishman pals U2’s Bono and The Edge will take part in the film’s music and in the film itself. The latter might mean some screen time, and it is a safe bet to say that after Can A Song Save Your Life?, that Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine will have a movie career if he wants one. Pic is a co-production with Likely Story’s Anthony Bregman and Carney’s Distressed Films, in partnership with PalmStar’s Kevin Frakes and Merced Media Partners’ Raj Brinder Singh in the U.S. along with Paul Trijbits and Christian Grass (FilmWave) in the UK. WME are handling the US rights for the film.

“John Carney has carved out a genre of his own — beautiful, soulful movies packed with longing, love, and music. Sing Street is his Cinema Paradiso — the musical film answer to where it all came from,” said Bregman.

Like his earlier films Once and Can A Song Save Your Life?, Sing Street is inspired by John’s life and love for music, and tells the story of a 14-year-old growing up in 80’s Dublin who must break free of a home strained by his parents’ relationship and money troubles, deal with his drop-out older brother’s antics, and survive a new public school where the kids are rough and the brothers are tougher. So he writes a song, forms a scrappy band with some school mates, writes more songs, and shoots some wicked music videos. How to shoot pop videos in a recession ridden country? Beg, borrow and steal. And steal. But when he realizes he can’t save his family, he must make a family of his own. What better way than to start than to run away with 15-year-old wannabe model girlfriend across the sea to London, the Emerald city, where their shared dreams might, or might not come true.